Wednesday, January 9, 2013

Over the past few weeks, the girls and I enjoyed our first Holiday Season out here in Washington. Alicia was able to take two weeks off from work and we made the most our time together. Here are a few of the highlights:

Tubing in the Cascades - About 30 minutes east of our home in Issaquah is a pretty big ski resort called The Summit in Snoqualmie. Alicia and I loaded up the kids and made the short commute to the land of the snow. From our house to the Snoqualmie Pass we went from an outdoor temperature of 50 degrees down to 30, and from no snow in sight to 6 foot piles lining the roads. The girls were excited to play in the snow, but they quickly learned the difference between the Minnesota powder snow and the frozen Washington slush they get out here. First of all, traction is a nightmare. Reegan couldn't take more than 3 steps without wiping out. She desperately wanted to wear her silver boots covered in sequence instead of the actual winter boots I suggested, so she learned the hard way just how costly fashion can be. In her defense, she did look ravishing, three-year-olds were lining up just to comment on how fly her wicked kicks were.

The tubing itself was awesome! The tubing hill is at the base of the ski slopes and we were able to tube from 3 - 5 pm. Even though it was a fairly overcast afternoon, when the lights from the slopes started coming on, you could see just how big and beautiful the mountain was. Alicia and I each took the younger kids in a tube with us and Anya was able to go by herself. The day was perfect; the kids were well behaved, the weather was awesome, and Alicia and I were able to get in a great workout. It was the kind of day that words can't really explain. I would have to do a Partridge Family-like montage set to the tune of Kesha's Die Young to do it justice, but I don't have the time to do that.

Ice Skating in Bellevue - Imagine 150 Asians trying to ice skate, need I say more? Tosh.0 would have had a field day. As some of you know, the Seattle is home to some of the technology giants of the world and who knows technology better than Asians? What they can't figure out, however, is how to balance on two thin strips of metal attached to the bottom of their feet. You'd think they'd figure out some kind of algorithm to make it work, but no.

The girls had a blast trying out skating for the first time. Anya was able to figure it out after a lap or two and was on her own for the most part. Caitlin learned that if she just kept her feet straight, I would skate with her between my legs and she could go fast without expending any energy of her own. Reegan was too stubborn to learn the subtleties of ice skating and attempted to walk like she normally would. With her feet flailing about, she fit right in with the Asian crowd.

Crazy Christmas Lights - The lights in our neighborhood were amazing. Just as a male peacock displays his plumage to assert himself as the dominant male, the residents of Klahanie deck their halls in hopes of being the talk of a myriad of local neighborhood gatherings. The kids loved looking at all the lights and I loved knowing that my electrical bill wasn't going to be much more than it was the rest of the year.

This house took the cake:

Yes, that house had it's own radio station and choreographed the lights to light up with the music. I too could make my lights play with music, but it would require me continually plugging in and unplugging the single strand of lights we had hanging above our garage door.

We had an amazing Christmas season and it was great to spend so much time with Alicia. It was hard not being home with our families, but we have been blessed with a great group of friends to help us feel at home here in Washington. The Schmidt's had a great 2012, and we look forward to another exciting year in 2013.

Tip of the Day - If your children fall in love with Ke$ha's newest hit single, "Die Young", do not play the music video for them. While their innocent minds are unable to imagine the adult nature of the lyrics, the music video does a great job of explaining exactly what the song is all about...